India’s Bharat Biotech’s Covid-19 vaccine - Covaxin has been included in the list of approved vaccines by the Australian government on Monday. Indian travellers who are vaccinated with Covaxin will now be allowed to enter Australia with a vaccination certificate.
Australia had one of the world’s strictest Covid restrictions and border policies and now after 18 months, Australia has opened its doors for travellers without a permit or quarantine policies on arrival in the country.
The island continent had last month recognised the Covishiled vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India for travel purposes.
Australian pharma regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), has also added Sinopharm's BBIBP-CorV, manufactured by China’s Sinopharm to the list of recognised vaccines, “would be recognised to establish a traveller’s vaccination status”.
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"Today, the TGA determined that Covaxin (manufactured by Bharat Biotech, India) and BBIBP-CorV (manufactured by Sinopharm, China) vaccines would be 'recognised' for the purpose of establishing a traveller's vaccination status. This recognition is for travellers aged 12 and over who have been vaccinated with Covaxin, and those 18 to 60 who have been vaccinated with BBIBP-CorV," a government statement said.
Travellers who have not taken their jabs will still face quarantine restrictions and have to produce proof of a negative Covid-19 test before boarding the flight. However, there are some exceptions for foreign travellers on economic grounds, including, controversially, some Hollywood stars.
The statement further read, "Importantly, recognition of Covaxin, and BBIBP-CorV, along with the previously announced recognition of Coronavac (manufactured by Sinovac, China) and Covishield (manufactured by AstraZeneca, India), means many citizens of China and India, as well as other countries in our region where these vaccines have been widely deployed, will now be considered fully vaccinated on entry to Australia.”
"This recognition means many citizens of China and India, as well as other countries in our region where these vaccines have been widely deployed, will now be considered fully vaccinated on entry to Australia. This will have significant impacts on the return of international students, and the travel of skilled and unskilled workers to Australia" added the media release.
The move comes days after the World Health Organisation sought more information from Bharat Biotech to take its Coronavirus vaccine Covaxin for Emergency Use Listing.
The TGA has also said that it has asked for additional data proving that these vaccines provide protection and potentially reduce the possibility that a traveller coming to the country would transmit Covid infection to others while staying in Australia or become severely unwell due to the virus. The regulatory body, earlier had stated that only vaccines used in Australia, Covishield from India and Sinovac from China will be accepted for the purposes of travel and other restrictions.
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The move will significantly impact the return of international students and the travelling of skilled and unskilled workers to Australia. Earlier, the country had officially announced that foreign students, including Indians, may return to the country by the end of this year and the beginning of 2022, before the beginning of the first semester in February-March.
After China, India is the second-largest source of foreign students in Australia. Indian students during the period of 2019-2020 had contributed $6.6 billion to the Australian economy.